Before everybody beats me up that this should be a travel report: hang on and read to the end.

I traveled on LH 88 yesterday from DUS to HAM (C Class) on B737 "Neubrandenburg" (don't know the reg, sorry), which already had the new seats installed. Believe me, this is a step back! From threads on this forum I know that they have squeezed in 12 more seats and that despite that they could keep legroom acceptable, thanks to lighter and smaller seats. Sounds good. Until you sit in one. What they have done is the following: the seat cushion is much much smaller than before, you just about have your bottom on it, but there's no support for your legs!! It's like sitting on a log. VERY uncomfortable. And that flight was just a short hop... I already dread longer flights to Italy or Spain or France.

Now here's my question: why on earth does LH spend money on new products such as the new intercont business class and the new European business class, and then does it "on the cheap". For the intercont product, why didn't they try to leapfrog competition by installing something BETTER than BA or the new AF. Instead, a bed which isn't fully horizontal. Now they've spent 300 million Euros, just to end up with something which doesn't stand comparison to competitors' offerings. The same for for the domestic/European business class: their seats were terrible alreaedy in the past, armrests too narrow, no lumbar support, no head support (for instance, BA, OS and I believe to remember also LX had seats that were WAY better) - and now this!!! Add to this Germans' inability to come up with decent catering (sorry, that's the Frenchman in me), and you're in for a terrible experience.

I love LH for their reliability, their efficiency, "smoothness" on the ground (that's my German half), but, gosh, is flying dreadful with them.

What does everyone around here think? Is LH doing something wrong? Making huge investments but still lagging competition in the quality of their product? After all, their results look good compared to some other carriers.